What is your pet peeve of the day?

[Grabberson]

Driving across town, stop at red light. Light turns green, nobody moves. Why? The person at the front of the line is texting.

[Mulligan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texas Proud Not to be on the grouchy old man side, but some of my sisters do complain about the younger generations... not the kids per se, but the ones working... as one said 'they do not strive for excellence'.... IOW, they just want to do the minimum required... My sister who was a teacher said she heard a number of times from young teachers 'I do not know why they did not learn it, I taught it'.... well, if they did not learn it you did NOT teach it.... you were just up there talking... No, it is not everybody.... but the percent that is slacking is growing...

This has been going on forever....Even when the pilgrims came over they were complaining about the lazy able bodied youth back then.


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[Walt34]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mulligan This has been going on forever....Even when the pilgrims came over they were complaining about the lazy able bodied youth back then.

Not sure where I read it but I understand the same complaint was lodged by the ancient Egyptians.

[braumeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mulligan This has been going on forever....Even when the pilgrims came over they were complaining about the lazy able bodied youth back then.

Too true.
One version, attributed to Socrates:

Quote:

The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.

[Philliefan33]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mulligan This has been going on forever....Even when the pilgrims came over they were complaining about the lazy able bodied youth back then. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Exactly. And it's a new pet peeve for me. I don't choose to participate in bashing the youngsters and I think it's a shame that it seems to be a favorite activity of some of my acquaintances.

[travelover]

My pet peeve: Lazy kids and parents who coddle them.

[NW-Bound]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SkisALot The use of the word "your" for "you are" or the contraction "you're." "Your" is possessive like in "your house." "You're" is a contraction for "you are happy" (or whatever).

Also, they're, their, and there.

Many people who do not make the above mistakes still confuse its and it's, and I find this really perplexing. Many are good writers otherwise, such as some bloggers that I like to read. Why?

The difference between it's and its was taught first thing to me as a non-native English speaker at the age of 12, long before I learned about dangling participles. They are but 3-letter words, and not that hard to remember and distinguish.

[Mulligan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braumeister Too true. One version, attributed to Socrates:

Well we are back a few millennia's now. I bet if we dug deeper, we may be able to trace this close to Adam and Eve complaining about lazy, idle, disrespectful youth.


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[samclem]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NW-Bound Many people who do not make the above mistakes still confuse its and it's, and I find this really perplexing. Many are good writers otherwise, such as some bloggers that I like to read. Why?

I think it is because it would be normal that the possessive form of personal pronouns would have an apostrophe (just like the noun it replaces). Why not?
"The whale's back glowed in the moonlight"
"It's back glowed in the moonlight."


Indefinite pronouns get an apostrophe when they are possessive (Everbody's home is their castle). Why not personal pronouns?I don't think it is as confusing with other personal pronouns because they just "look wrong" with an " 's (his's, her's, etc). But since "it's " is a legitimate construction and people see it all time, it is less likely to look out of place.

[NW-Bound]

It looks so wrong to me when they write "the dog wags it's tail".

In my mind, I see "the dog wags it is tail" because that's how I was taught, and it irks me the same as fingernails scratching on a blackboard.

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem ...people see it all time, it is less likely to look out of place.

Yes, particularly when they see more and more writers committing the same mistake. It becomes de facto. Argh!

[NW-Bound]

I learned to read and write English long before I had anybody to converse with. I think that must be the reason grammatical errors and mispellings, particularly my own when I later spot them, bother the hell out of me.

To a native speaker, he may think that if two words are pronounced the same, their different spellings are just superfluous.

[John Galt III]

Had another "incompetent phone rep" episode with a health insurance co. She was disagreeing that I had coverage for biannual routine eye exam. I had the 2015 booklet in front of me and I was telling her what page I was on, and that it clearly stated x,y,z. She kept saying I didn't have coverage. I called back the next day, got someone else who said I did have coverage.

[splitwdw]

Lots of driving this holiday and lots of people that shouldn't be driving. The people that won't pass in the passing lane, the people that are weaving...wonder if it's drunk drivers or cell phone drivers, the people that creep up to a traffic light, the people that stop and leave several car lengths between the car in front of them at the traffic light and then slowly creep up while the lights red, the timid driver that can't merge into traffic, no turn signal. I'm looking forward to the self driving cars for other people!
Driving a truck you can see into the smaller cars that are in the passing lane. Can't tell you the number of people that think they can text/talk and drive.
I was with someone that I think is an exceptional driver. All of a sudden they were starting to drift out of their lane. I asked what had happened. They said one of those electronic bill boards caught their eye. They had started to read it....it was something about distracted drivers cause accidents!

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by splitwdw I'm looking forward to the self driving cars for other people!

Now that is the best use of self-driving cars I have heard so far!

[Car-Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NW-Bound I learned to read and write English long before I had anybody to converse with. I think that must be the reason grammatical errors and mispellings, particularly my own when I later spot them, bother the hell out of me. To a native speaker, he may think that if two words are pronounced the same, their different spellings are just superfluous.

Try this test. It's another simple one....

Words that are spelled differently but sound the same | Learn English

[aaronc879]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Car-Guy Try this test. It's another simple one.... Words that are spelled differently but sound the same | Learn English

That test is clearly too easy. I got 100%. I never get 100% on a test.

[Theseus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NW-Bound It looks so wrong to me when they write "the dog wags it's tail". In my mind, I see "the dog wags it is tail" because that's how I was taught, and it irks me the same as fingernails scratching on a blackboard.

DW and I chuckle at this sign in our neighborhood. I picture a horror movie someday on the subject of possessive flora overpowering unsuspecting homeowners.

My grammar peeve is "loose" being used in place of "lose." I never saw that until just a few years ago. At first I thought it perhaps a regional usage, but it seems to have become prevalent around the country.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Theseus I never saw that until just a few years ago. At first I thought it perhaps a regional usage, but it seems to have become prevalent around the country.

An observation along the same lines, I've seen cloths used for the term clothes many, many times over the past few years. Makes me crasy.

Almost as bad as using the term tread when referencing a thread on the forum.

And than there is the is the incorrect use of the term then...

[braumeister]

Also the use of quotation marks to emphasize a word on a sign, usually implying something like the opposite meaning to those with better English.

"Original" art for sale

"Homemade" pies

etc.

[NW-Bound]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Car-Guy Try this test. It's another simple one.... Words that are spelled differently but sound the same | Learn English

Grade school students should pass this with a 100% score.

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo An observation along the same lines, I've seen cloths used for the term clothes many, many times over the past few years. Makes me crasy. Almost as bad as using the term tread when referencing a thread on the forum. And than there is the is the incorrect use of the term then...

A subtle joke...

I have caught myself mixing up then and than occasionally when making a post, and have to hurry up to correct it before too many readers see it. Of course I know the difference, but I fear old age is catching up with me. And yes, I have written tread instead of thread at least once.

Recently, I wrote Ebinizer Scrooge instead of Ebenezer, and when I later saw that it did not look right it was too late to correct. Arghh!

Alzheimer cannot be too far ahead.